HIGHLIGHTS

Vinod Chaturvedi and Narendra Kumar Pandey have been asked to reply by last week of August

Vinod Chaturvedi and Narendra Kumar Pandey have bben asked to pay a fine of Rs 2.5 lakh each

The notice is related to 10 RTI applications filed by activist Anupam Mishra in March, 2016

Commissioner Vijay Manohar Tiwari has served notices to two civic officials, asking them why they should pay a fine of Rs 2.5 lakh each for not sharing information under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

Vinod Chaturvedi and Narendra Kumar Pandey, officials of Chandia Nagar Palika (civic body) in Umaria district, have been asked to reply by the last week of August.

The notice is related to 10 RTI applications filed by activist Anupam Mishra in March, 2016, seeking information on various issues.

Narendra Kumar Pandey, Public Information Officer of the civic body, did not give information in the stipulated 30 days or took any other decision on the applications, Tiwari's order said.

Narendra Kumar Pandey's successor Chaturvedi too dilly-dallied and did not provide information despite directions of the State Information Commission (SIC), it added.

This is possibly for the first time that the SIC has cracked the whip against lax response to RTI queries in Madhya Pradesh.

Implementation of the RTI Act is too poor in civic bodies across the state, Tiwari told PTI.